Go West! Art of the American Frontier opens tomorrow at the High Museum of Art. I had the pleasure of viewing the exhibition the other day and find it to be quite remarkable. Now, granted I have ties to the West...
Let me share those connections with you and then I'll share with you how exciting this exhibition truly is.
Originally from the East Coast, I spent part of my sophomore year in high school in Pinedale, Wyoming, and later moved back to Wyoming—again to Pinedale—for my full senior year in high school. Later I went to Boot Camp and A School in San Diego, California, but Wyoming was considerably more like the Old West.
I've visited most of our Western states, one of the most memorable being The Grand Canyon—during a helicopter tour of the Canyon. That was great fun! And a rain-free week in Seattle was pretty amazing, too.
Even more personal, my stepfather passed away a few months ago. I loved him very much. He and my mother were together for 17 years and made many trips to Montana, where he was originally from. He raised and showed horses...he was a real life cowboy. I miss him.
And my great grandmother was born on a Cherokee Reservation in North Carolina...not necessarily a tie to the West, but many tribes of Indians are referenced in the exhibition. I miss her so much, but enjoy many pleasant memories of her on a regular basis.
So...Go West! is fantastic. I mentioned that I went to high school in Wyoming. This exhibition hails from Wyoming. Specifically, the vast majority of the 257 artifacts in the exhibition are from the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming.
Check this out—and this I didn't know...
This is the 100th anniversary of Buffalo Bill's final visit to Atlanta. His first visit to Atlanta—and this is fantastic to realize—was to perform his Wild West show at the Cotton States and International Exhibition in 1895. So, every time you visit Piedmont Park, you're walking on the same grounds where Buffalo Bill entertained thousands of Wild West hungry fans!
So, one of the questions I had going in was whether this exhibition is competing with the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia—the State's second largest art museum.
Fortunately, the exhibition was curated so as to not compete with Booth. While Booth's collections focus primarily on contemporary Western artists, the Go West! exhibition focuses on Western art from 1830-1930.
Go West! features paintings, fashion, drawings, sculptures, photographs, guns and rifles, and perhaps most impressive—or at least most likely to be fan-favorites—are a pair of colt firearms owned by Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley's gun!
Around corner after corner, artifact after artifact help tell the tale of our rather colorful Wild West history, without getting too much into the heavier details—again, it's mostly a focus on Western art.
For the art-savvy tourist, you may like to know that the exhibition features works by Albert Bierstadt, Thomas "Yellowstone" Moran, N.C. Wyeth, Frederic Remington, and Charles Russell. I found the collection an impressive balance of art, history, and whimsy in entertaining storytelling...all of the caliber expected of the High, of course.
And on the fun side, be sure to bring your camera or camera phone because you'll find in the main lobby one of those pose-behind boards with the cutout faces...you become Buffalo Bill or Annie Oakley!
There is a LOT of programming planned for Go West!, including lectures, a College Night, events for teens, and workshops. Check the High's website for a listing of events!
Go West! Art of the American Frontier will be on exhibit through April 13, 2014. Ensure you make time to the High Museum of Art to go see it...you'll be educated and entertained in a way that only the Wild West can. And, this exhibition is not a traveling exhibition...when it's done, it all goes back to Cody, Wyoming, so for many this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
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| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
Originally from the East Coast, I spent part of my sophomore year in high school in Pinedale, Wyoming, and later moved back to Wyoming—again to Pinedale—for my full senior year in high school. Later I went to Boot Camp and A School in San Diego, California, but Wyoming was considerably more like the Old West.
I've visited most of our Western states, one of the most memorable being The Grand Canyon—during a helicopter tour of the Canyon. That was great fun! And a rain-free week in Seattle was pretty amazing, too.
Even more personal, my stepfather passed away a few months ago. I loved him very much. He and my mother were together for 17 years and made many trips to Montana, where he was originally from. He raised and showed horses...he was a real life cowboy. I miss him.
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
So...Go West! is fantastic. I mentioned that I went to high school in Wyoming. This exhibition hails from Wyoming. Specifically, the vast majority of the 257 artifacts in the exhibition are from the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming.
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
This is the 100th anniversary of Buffalo Bill's final visit to Atlanta. His first visit to Atlanta—and this is fantastic to realize—was to perform his Wild West show at the Cotton States and International Exhibition in 1895. So, every time you visit Piedmont Park, you're walking on the same grounds where Buffalo Bill entertained thousands of Wild West hungry fans!
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
Fortunately, the exhibition was curated so as to not compete with Booth. While Booth's collections focus primarily on contemporary Western artists, the Go West! exhibition focuses on Western art from 1830-1930.
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
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| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
 |
| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
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| "Go West!", High Museum of Art |
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